17,000 Reasons to Check Out the Actors Fund

Tony winner Brian Stokes Mitchell, chairman of the board of the Actors Fund, champions the organization’s cause to help entertainment professionals make their living in the arts.
What can the Actors Fund do for actors?It’s “the Actors Fund,” but it’s for anybody who’s made their living in show business—and that’s actors, singers, dancers, writers, musicians, agents, managers, ticket takers, circus performers, camera operators, producers…. You don’t necessarily have to be a union member, but most people that have stuck with the business for five, 10, 15, 20 years happen to be in the union. Our official name is “The Actors Fund, for everyone in entertainment,” but everyone calls it the Actors Fund.
What is your role?My job as chairman is mostly to be a public face…. When Joe Benincasa, president and CEO of the Fund, first asked me to be president [my former title] I said, “Joe, I can’t be president! I’m about to have a baby. I’ve still got this career that’s going full time.” I agreed to one year—despite the fact that a term was three years. I wanted to ensure that I would be of service to the Fund. Here I am